Department for Transport

Aircraft: Air Conditioning

The Countess of Mar: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 11 July (HL873), whether ExxonMobil was consulted by, or supplied evidence to, the Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food and the Environment (COT) prior to the publication of the 2007 COT Statement and whether the results were conclusive.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COT) identified and evaluated over 400 references when producing their 2007 statement, called “Statement on the Review of the Cabin Air Environment, Ill-health in Aircraft Crews and the Possible Relationship to Smoke/Fume Events in Aircraft”. The evidence base consisted of data submitted by the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) and references identified as relevant by the COT Secretariat. All evidence reviewed can be found listed at the end of the Statement. There are no references to ExxonMobil submitting evidence, or being consulted by the COT during the review.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

EU Law

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether ministers and civil servants are required to comply with and execute EU law, and under what circumstances they can depart from the requirements of EU law prior to the date when withdrawal from the EU triggered by Article 50 is completed.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK remains a member of the EU until the process of leaving is concluded. Consequently, rights and obligations in the EU Treaties and other EU law continue to apply until that time.

Syria: Refugees

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the EU's refugee deal with Turkey, what impact assessment has been made of the impact of that deal on the safety and security of Syrian refugees.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK strongly welcomes the plan agreed between the EU and Turkey to end irregular migration from Turkey to the EU. For the first time, we have a plan that breaks the business model of the people smugglers by cutting the link between getting in a boat and getting settlement in Europe. The numbers of migrants arriving on Greek islands has significantly reduced since this deal came into effect and it is making a genuine difference to managing the flows of migration; preventing people from dying in attempting the crossing or putting themselves in the hands of smugglers.The UK takes the view that Turkey offers sufficient protection, in its law and its practice, to return people there. Turkey is already hosting over 2.7 million Syrian refugees and has granted them access to healthcare, education and the labour market. We are also pleased to note that, since the 18 March EU-Turkey migration deal, Turkey has reached agreements with the European Commission and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in providing them with access to the Düziçi Camp and Kirklareli Removal Centre. The UK continues to work with Turkey to deliver further improvements to their immigration and asylum services.

Israel: Palestinians

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel regarding the reported closure of Palestinian media outlet Musawa for a second time in a year.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We have not made any representations to the Israeli authorities on this issue.

Moldova: Corruption

Lord Astor of Hever: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what programmes are in place to help the government of Moldova address all forms of corruption.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The British Government is providing reform assistance to Moldova through the Good Governance Fund (GGF). Supporting anti-corruption measures is one of the key components of our GGF work in Moldova. It includes projects focusing on financial sector transparency and reform, public administration reform, judicial reform, strengthening independent media and the energy sector.

Moldova: Politics and Government

Lord Astor of Hever: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many times officials have met the deputy chairman of the Democratic Party of Moldova since May 2010.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: Officials have met the Deputy Chairman of the Democratic Party of Moldova on a number of occasions since May 2010, principally in his capacity as First Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova (December 2010-February 2013).Most of these occasions were group meetings involving our Ambassador in Chisinau and other members of the Diplomatic Corps in Chisinau.

Moldova: Politics and Government

Lord Astor of Hever: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of democratic progress in Moldova.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: A more stable, secure and prosperous Moldova is important for the stability of the European neighbourhood. Moldova has made some progress on implementing the reforms required under the Association Agreement with the EU. But substantial political and economic issues remain to be addressed. This can only be achieved through constructive dialogue among all political forces in the country, which takes into account the expectations of the people of Moldova.

Turkey: Kurds

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Turkey about the impact on the civilian population of current military operations in Lice and adjoining neighbourhoods in southeast Turkey; and whether they plan to propose a fact-finding visit to the region by the International Committee of the Red Cross and Red Crescent to investigate reports of widespread displacement of people from their homes.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Turkish Government have said that over 300,000 people have fled their homes in the region. Our thoughts are with the victims of the PKK terrorist attacks, and the civilians who have been caught up in the violence. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), and the Minister for Europe, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington), and our Ambassador to Turkey, have discussed with the Turkish government the importance of respecting human rights and avoiding civilian casualties in the fight against terrorism. We believe the first responsibility for investigating any alleged violations falls to Turkey; and that the PKK needs to cease violence in order to create the conditions for political resolution of the difficulties in the south east.

Saudi Arabia: UN Human Rights Council

Baroness Deech: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to support the re-election of Saudi Arabia to the UN Human Rights Council for a second term.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK never publicises how it votes in these matters. Saudi Arabia did not need our support in the last election to the Human Rights Council since they were uncontested.

Zimbabwe: Financial Services

Lord Oates: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the likelihood that the government of Zimbabwe will comply with the obligations required for re-entry to the global financial system.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The International Monetary Fund Board meeting in May 2016 noted Zimbabwe’s good progress and encouraged further reform. Whilst this Government welcomes Zimbabwe’s progress, full re-engagement will only be possible once the Zimbabwean government has demonstrated a clear commitment to economic and political reform. British Ministers and officials have met Chinamasa in recent months, including the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for International Development, my Hon Friend the Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Nick Hurd), in May and the Minister for Africa, my Hon Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge), in July. In these meetings, Ministers emphasised to Chinamasa the importance of urgent economic and political reforms in Zimbabwe if there is to be further progress on re-engagement with the International Financial Institutions.

Zimbabwe: Financial Services

Lord Oates: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether ministers plan to meet Zimbabwe's Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa prior to the decision of the International Monetary Fund on whether Zimbabwe should be re-admitted to the global financial system.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: British Ministers and officials have met Chinamasa in recent months, including the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for International Development, my Hon Friend the Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Nick Hurd), in May and the Minister for Africa, my Hon Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge), in July. In these meetings, Ministers emphasised to Chinamasa the importance of urgent economic and political reforms in Zimbabwe if there is to be further progress on re-engagement with the International Financial Institutions.

International Organisations

Lord Judd: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to strengthen the resources available for the development of UK policies towards the UN, the UN Security Council, UN operational agencies, and international financial institutions.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Government regularly reviews resources devoted to supporting policy development on key multilateral institutions, including the UN and international financial institutions.

Council of Europe

Lord Judd: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what policy priority they now intend to accord to the Council of Europe.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK continues to be an active member of the Council of Europe. We value its role in the rules based international system, which helps nations work together to promote democracy, human rights and the rule of law.

Kurds: Females

Baroness Northover: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the Kurdistan Regional Government in the light of reports of the recent closure of the Kurdish Women’s Relations Office in Erbil, and what was the outcome of those discussions.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We are aware of the recent closure of the Kurdish Women’s Relations Office, also known as REPAK. Our Consulate-General in Erbil raised this issue with the Kurdistan Regional government (KRG) through the Head of Asayish (part of the Kurdish Internal Security Services), General Esmat Argooshi, and the KRG Prime Minister’s Private Secretary. We have also discussed the matter with the Human Rights Office at the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI). UNAMI have engaged with the Kurdistan Regional government’s Department of Foreign Relations, who said that they would monitor the situation. We are encouraging the Kurdistan Regional Government to respect the legal rights of all legally registered Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and we support UNAMI’s efforts to promote the legal rights of NGOs operating in Iraq.

Sudan: Human Trafficking

Lord Chidgey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports from Human Rights Watch of collusion between Sudanese police forces and people smugglers trafficking people in the region.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We are aware of, and deeply troubled by, reports of collusion between Sudanese police forces and people smugglers. We have raised our concerns over these reports with both the Ministry of Interior and the Commissioner for Refugees. We will continue to raise our concerns with the Government of Sudan as part of our wider engagement on migration issues.

Bosnia and Herzegovina: EU Enlargement

Baroness Helic: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress the UK–German initiative for Bosnia–Herzegovina, announced in November 2014, has made; what recent discussions they have had with the government of Germany regarding that initiative; and what plans there are for continued UK engagement in that initiative.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK-German initiative was adopted by the EU at the December 2014 Foreign Affairs Council. Since then, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (BiH) party leaders have signed a written commitment to implement a package of reforms (Reform Agenda); BiH’s Stabilisation and Association Agreement has come into force (1 June 2015); and BiH submitted its application for EU membership on 15 February 2016. Whilst some progress has been made in implementing the Reform Agenda, more needs to be done. The Government is in regular contact with Germany, other Member States and the EU institutions to encourage BiH’s leaders to maintain progress on reform. The Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), discussed implementation of the Reform Agenda with the Chairman of the BiH Council of Ministers, Denis Zvizdić, when they met on 11 July.

Israel: Palestinians

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports of the use of torture by Israeli Security Forces and Israeli authorities in the West Bank and Gaza; and whether they plan to prosecute alleged torturers who reach the UK.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: Whilst we have not made any assessment on this issue, the UK is firmly committed to the promotion and protection of human rights in Israel and in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, as well as compliance with international humanitarian law. We regularly discuss implementation of those obligations with the Israeli authorities. We have confirmed with the Israeli authorities that Israel is in the process of incorporating the crime of torture into national legislation. The appropriate authorities in the UK for the investigation and prosecution of crimes are the Police and the Crown Prosecution Service, which function independently of Government in these matters.

Iraq: Iran

Lord Maginnis of Drumglass: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the call by Amnesty International for an investigation into the missile attack on Camp Liberty on 4 July.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We strongly condemn the attack against the civilian residents of Camp Liberty in Iraq on 4 July. We are aware of Amnesty International’s call for an investigation into the attack and we have publically called on the Government of Iraq to investigate the attack and bring the attackers to justice.

Armed Conflict: Sexual Offences

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what monitoring the Foreign and Commonwealth Office carries out to assess the progress in implementing the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative in relation to international commitments.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK is delivering on its international commitments through a mix of lobbying, programme delivery and the deployment of its team of experts. Project work is monitored on a quarterly basis and, in consultation with our overseas posts, adjusted where improvements are necessary. We also hold regular working level meetings with both non-governmental organisations and like-minded donors. Both serve to ensure the Government’s commitments remain relevant and deliver real impact where it is most needed. An ambitious campaign launched this year seeks to deepen this collaborative work in tackling the stigma associated with sexual violence, improve evidence gathering, enable more prosecutions and reduce the risks posed to civilians in over 13 focus countries. Updates to Parliament and other interested parties are currently via the National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security as well as the annual Human Rights report which give an overview of progress made against international commitments.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Motor Vehicles: UK Trade with EU

Lord Davies of Stamford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the value of (1) passenger cars, and (2) motor vehicles, annually (a) produced in the EU, (b) exported from the UK to the rest of the EU, (c) exported from the rest of the EU to the UK, (d) exported from the UK to Germany, and (e) exported from Germany to the UK.

Lord Price: The EU-28 automotive industries generated a combined turnover of around £730bn (€900bn) in 2014. However it is not possible to separate out the passenger car element of this. Source: EuroStat Structural Business Survey (NACE 29 Manufacture of motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers)The table below shows the value of exports and imports of motor vehicles, and of these, passenger cars between a) UK and the EU-28 and b) UK and Germany.The definitions for each category are based on HS commodity codes. The codes used for each category are shown below the table.Value of trade in passenger cars and motor vehicles, £bn Motor vehicles Of which passenger cars 2014 2015 2014 2015UK exports to EU13.1 13.9 9.5 10.2UK imports from EU37.9 41.8 25.2 28.5UK exports to Germany2.5 2.7 1.5 1.7UK imports from Germany18.6 19.8 14.0 15.3Source: Eurostat Trade Database, converted from €s to £sPassenger cars = HS 8702 and HS 8703Motor vehicles = HS 8701, HS 8702, HS 8703, HS 8704, HS 8705, HS 8706, HS 8707, HS 8708 and HS 8709

Medicine: Research

Baroness Thomas of Winchester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the result of the referendum on the UK's membership of the EU, what plans they have for maintaining the UK's status as a leader in EU and international collaboration on research into rare diseases such as muscular dystrophy and neuromuscular conditions.

Baroness Thomas of Winchester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the result of the referendum on the UK's membership of the EU, what measures they plan to take to ensure the UK's continued participation in EU-wide data sharing initiatives for clinical trial development and condition-specific patient registries.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The Government recognises the importance of our research base, which is why we have protected the ring fenced science resource budget in real terms from its current level of £4.7bn for the rest of the parliament. Programmes such as the £1.5bn Global Challenges Research Fund and the £1bn Ross Fund will support the UK’s status as a global leader in medical research. The Global Challenges Research Fund will mobilise the UK’s world leading research base to address key challenges facing developing countries, including in health research. The Ross Fund will develop, test and deliver a range of new products (including vaccines, drugs and diagnostics) to help combat the world’s most serious diseases in developing countries. The referendum result has no immediate effect on the right of researchers to apply to or participate in EU research programmes. UK participants can continue to apply to the programmes in the usual way. The future of UK access to these programmes will be determined as part of a wider discussion with the EU.

Research: EU Grants and Loans

Baroness Thomas of Winchester: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the result of the referendum on the UK's membership of the EU, what measures they plan to take to ensure continued UK access to grants from Horizon 2020.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The UK economy is fundamentally strong and our research and innovation are world-leading. The UK’s decision to leave the EU has no immediate effect on the right of researchers to apply or to participate in Horizon 2020 as the UK is still an EU member state. UK participants can continue to apply to the programme in the usual way. The Commission has made a public statement on its website to this effect. The future of UK access to European research and innovation funding will be determined as part of wider discussions with the EU.

Department for Education

Refugees: Education

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what policies are in place to ensure that refugees face no barriers to assimilation within the education system.

Lord Nash: The government is wholly committed to ensuring that refugees who are resettled in the UK receive appropriate support and have a positive experience while they remain in the UK. Children with refugee or humanitarian protection status have access to the education system in the same way as citizen children.A key factor in the successful integration of children from overseas into UK schools is their access to English language provision. Local authorities can include an ‘English as an additional language’ (EAL) factor in their funding formulae. Funding allocated through this factor forms part of the school’s core budget and it is for school leaders to determine how best to use their whole budget so that all children can reach their full potential.Schools will need to demonstrate to Ofsted that any special educational needs of refugee children, as with all other children, are addressed satisfactorily.

Sex and Relationship Education

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the study by the Universities of Bristol and Central Lancashire which found that 22 per cent of boys aged 14 to 17 have perpetrated acts of sexual coercion or abuse, what sex education initiatives they have in place that are specifically aimed at boys within that age group.

Lord Nash: Sex and relationships education (SRE) is compulsory in all maintained secondary schools and academies are expected to provide SRE as part of a broad and balanced curriculum.Any school teaching SRE must have regard to Secretary of State’s Sex and Relationship Education Guidance (2000). The guidance makes clear that all sex and relationship education should be age-appropriate. Schools have the freedom to decide which topics are most relevant to their pupils to ensure they develop positive values and a moral framework that will guide their decisions, judgments and behaviour.To support teaching about healthy relationships, the PSHE Association has developed non-statutory guidance for schools about the topic of consent, which was published in March 2015. We strongly welcome this guidance, which will help teachers clearly establish the legal framework around consent and supports the government’s ‘This is Abuse’ campaign, which helped educate young people about damaging behaviours within relationships. ‘This is abuse’ was followed up this year by the £3.85 million “Disrespect NoBody” campaign, supported by Government Equalities Office and Home Office. The campaign aims to prevent the onset of domestic violence in adults by challenging attitudes and behaviours amongst teenage boys and girls that abuse in relationships is acceptable.

Ministry of Justice

Prisons: Staff

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of the current staffing levels in UK prisons.

Lord Faulks: Each prison’s staffing level is carefully designed to provide a safe, decent and secure environment for staff and prisoners. In March 2016 there were an extra 530 prison staff across the prison estate compared with January 2015; and NOMS will continue to recruit sufficient Prison Officers to support full delivery of the Benchmark in each establishment. A further £10 million has also been allocated to NOMS to specifically address safety concerns across the prison estate.

Prison Accommodation

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Prisons Inspectorate has raised concerns about the conditions in any UK prisons in the past 12 months, and if so, which.

Lord Faulks: Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons has a statutory duty to report to the Secretary of State for Justice on conditions in prisons, and the treatment of prisoners, in all prisons and young offender institutions in England and Wales. For each inspection completed, a report is published which includes recommendations for improvement. These reports are all in the public domain and available from the Inspectorate’s website. Inspections of prisons in Scotland and Northern Ireland are the responsibility of their respective inspection authorities.

Prisons: Private Sector

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are considering withdrawing the contracts for responsibility for certain prisons from private companies, and if so, which companies.

Lord Faulks: There are no plans to withdraw the contracts of any privately managed prisons. Privately-managed prisons have been a key feature of the prison estate for 20 years. Some of our best prisons are operated by private providers, and they will continue to play a crucial role in rehabilitating offenders.

Prisons: Arson

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether any prisons have suffered arson attacks in the past 12 months.

Lord Faulks: The National Offender Management Service has a range of measures for monitoring fire safety in prisons. NOMS does not specifically monitor the number of arson incidents in prisons.

The Lord Chairman of Committees

Peers: Email

Lord Laird: To ask the Chairman of Committees whether any members of the House have been asked to provide written consent for their Parliamentary emails to be monitored by MessageLabs antivirus software.

Lord Laming: All users, including Members, agree to abide by Parliament’s Acceptable Use Policy every time they log on to the Parliamentary Network. This policy makes clear that the Parliamentary Digital Service provides systems to protect Parliamentary users (and the network) from malicious attack.The Messagelabs service is an important part of the infrastructure protecting Members and the wider Parliamentary Network against malicious attack. It is a fully automated scanning service which scans for and blocks emails that are potential vectors for cyber-attack. It also scans for and quarantines emails that are suspected spam, again using fully automated systems. It does not involve any other form of monitoring of the content of parliamentary email.

Ministry of Defence

Reserve Forces

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to make fuller use of personnel with regular reserve commitment liability to enhance the size of the armed forces, in particular the army, in times of tension and war; and how many men and women would be available from that source.

Earl Howe: The Regular Reserve Force comprises the Royal Fleet Reserve, Army Regular Reserve and Royal Air Force Regular Reserve. Many of these former members of the Regular Forces retain a liability to be called up for service, the duration of which is determined by their previous contract type, length of Regular service and reason for leaving. They meet two functions: some are available to provide specialist capability for a limited time after leaving Regular service; all form a strategic reserve for resilience and regeneration of our Armed Forces in case of national crisis. In general, ex-Regular reservists have only been called upon to support routine operations if they have volunteered or when volunteer reservists have not been available.With our growing numbers of Tri-Service Volunteer Reserves, which had a trained strength of 27,520 as at 1 May 2016, and our ability to recall ex-Regulars we are confident that we would have the resources necessary to meet our requirements in times of tension and war.Strength figures for the Reserve Forces, including the Regular Reserve Force, are set out in Monthly Service Personnel Statistics on Gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-armed-forces-monthly-service-personnel-statistics-2016

Armed Forces: Training

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect to complete the training review, publication and roll-out of training programmes on the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative, and the Women, Peace and Security Agenda, for training delivered (1) in the UK to military officers from overseas, and (2) to foreign military forces.

Earl Howe: Our Armed Forces already undertake high quality training on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) and the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative (PSVI) but a training needs analysis (TNA), which will report shortly, is assessing the level of future WPS/PSVI training required for UK and overseas militaries. Every year around 150 military officers from more than 50 countries attend UK Defence Academy courses that include lectures on WPS; and students on the Advanced Command and Staff Course are offered an additional two week 'elective' on "Gender, War, and Armed Forces", which some of the overseas officers choose to attend.The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is also delivering WPS and PSVI in-country training to foreign militaries through the deployment of short term training teams and deployable experts, and via our overseas training establishments. The MOD is developing a standardised core syllabus for the training on WPS and PSVI delivered to foreign forces, which is expected to be finalised in January 2017. Building on the core syllabus, the training is then theatre-specific and tailored to the needs of troops being deployed, based on the level of training they have already received.The MOD does not routinely publish its training materials but, as part of an accreditation process, it will share course materials with allies in NATO, the European Union, and the United Nations.

Department for Work and Pensions

Pension Funds: Valuation

Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to introduce a smoothed discount rate for the purpose of pension fund valuation.

Baroness Altmann: Government consulted in 2013 on whether legislation should be introduced to allow the ‘smoothing’ of asset values and liabilities in funding valuations.Responses to the call for evidence indicated that there was no strong case for legislating to permit smoothing, with the overwhelming majority of respondents against this option. Respondents instead favoured greater use of the flexibilities within the existing legislation governing scheme funding.In its response to the call for evidence the Government advised that, given the views received, it did not intend to pursue the option of legislating to permit asset and liability smoothing, and that remains the Government’s position.

Home Office

Common Travel Area

Baroness Goudie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to maintain the normalisation of the Irish border in terms of the common travel area, and whether they plan to take steps to ensure that there will be no ethnic profiling of people crossing that border.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Prime Minister has reiterated the importance of continuing to engage with Ireland on how we can maintain the Common Travel Area (CTA). The CTA arrangement pre-dates the EU and we remain committed to it. The Government continues to work closely with Ireland to improve the security of the CTA. UK law enforcement agencies carry out intelligence-led checks on CTA routes to combat abuse – all of which is done within the law.

Asylum: France

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what legal resources are being provided to refugees in the camps in Calais and Dunkirk to make asylum applications to the UK.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The provision of legal resources in France is a matter for the French Government.Asylum seekers cannot claim asylum in the UK if they are in France. If a person requires international protection they should claim asylum in France, which is bound by the same EU and international obligations as the UK.If after claiming asylum in France it is established that the UK is the state responsible for examining their claim on the basis of the Dublin regulation, including under its family unity provisions, a take charge request may be submitted to the Home Office.

Refugees: Children

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 13 June (HL Deb, col 1004), what new information they have about the fate of the 10,000 unaccompanied refugee children who, according to Interpol, have gone missing; and how many unaccompanied refugee children have arrived in the UK to date.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The UK is the largest bilateral contributor to the humanitarian response to the crisis in Europe and the Balkans with a total contribution of £65 million. The efforts of the partners we fund are targeted to reach the most vulnerable including children.It also includes the £10 million Refugee Children Fund the Department for International Development (DFID) has created to support vulnerable refugee and migrant children specifically in Europe. The fund will support three specialist and mandated organisations; the UNHCR, Save the Children and the International Rescue Committee to work with host authorities to care for and assist unaccompanied or separated children in Europe and the Balkans.In addtion, the government continues to implement the Immigration Act 2016, including the provision to transfer unaccompained refugee children to the UK from elswhere in Europe. We are consulting local authorities as required and are also working closely with relevant Member States and other partners such as UNHCR, UNICEF and Save the Children.We continue to fulfil our obligations under the Dublin Regulation to unaccompanied children who qualify for transfer to the UK under family reunification provisions. Since January 2016 our records show that over 60 children have been transferred from other EU countries to the UK.We are working with UNHCR on our Children at Risk Resettlement Scheme to resettle vulnerable children, both unaccompanied and with their family members from the Middle East and North Africa region. We have committed to resettling several hundred individuals in the first year.

Migrant Workers: Entry Clearances

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 16 June (HL568), whether they will make available annually information about (1) how many certificates of sponsorship for immigration entry clearance are granted to each licensed sponsoring employer, (2) how long licences are valid, and (3) the top 50 employment categories within which the individual certificates are granted in each year.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: There are no plans to publish data regarding how many certificates of sponsorship for immigration entry clearance are granted to each licensed sponsoring employer.There is no requirement to publish annual information regarding how long sponsor licences are valid for as all sponsor licences are issued for four years, as set out in the published sponsor guidance.Sponsorship data by tier and industry type is already published as part of the immigration statistics quarterly releases on the gov.uk website. However there are no plans to specifically publish the top 50 employment categories within which the individual certificates are granted in each year.

Immigration

Baroness Goudie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the referendum of the UK membership of the EU, whether families and individuals already established in the UK, including families and individuals from other EU countries, will be able to stay in the UK whatever changes may be made in regard to future migration to the UK.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Government wants to be able to guarantee the legal status of EU nationals who are living in the UK, and we are confident that we will be able to do this.But we must also win the same rights for British nationals living in European countries, and it will be an early negotiating objective for the Government to achieve those things together.

Hungary: Asylum

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether Hungary has ratified the UN Convention on Refugees; and whether they will make representations to the government of Hungary about not expelling any applicants for asylum before their cases have been examined and decided.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: According to the UNHCR’s online list of participating States Hungary acceded to the 1951 Convention and 1967 Protocol on 14 March 1989.The EU Procedures Directive sets out when a Member State may declare an asylum claim inadmissible, including when it is permissible to return an asylum applicant to a safe third country. Hungary is also bound by the EU Returns Directive, which includes safeguards for individuals facing removal from participating States.Member States' implementation and compliance with EU legislation is a matter for the European Commission and the European Court of Justice. The Government has no plans to make representations to the Government of Hungary on this issue.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Lord Pendry: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact that the result of the referendum on UK membership of the EU will have on the free movement of football players from EU member states and their ability to continue to play football in UK football clubs.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: There will be no immediate changes in the circumstances of European nationals who wish to travel, study and work in the UK.

Free Movement of People

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken to bring UK law into line with the European Court of Justice ruling C-127/08 on the implementation of Directive 2004/38/EC and the rights of non-EU spouses of EU citizens to move freely in the EU.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: United Kingdom law relating to the rights of EU nationals and their family members to enter and reside in the UK is fully compliant with the decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union in C-127/08.

Private Rented Housing

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government why people with a British passport and of British nationality require an additional immigration check when submitting an application to rent a home.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Home Office guidance makes clear that landlords are expected to carry out checks on all adults.This approach helps landlords to avoid acting in a discriminatory manner and to establish a statutory excuse against a penalty should they be found letting to an illegal migrant. In many cases, landlords and agents will already be asking for the same documents for credit and tenant referencing purposes.

Refugees: Children

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 27 June (HL649), how many unaccompanied refugee children have reached the UK so far this year from (1) Europe, (2) the Middle East, and (3) elsewhere, for family reunion or otherwise for resettlement.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: In the year ending March 2016 the UK received 3,206 asylum applications from unaccompanied children who had reached the UK.We continue to fulfil our obligations under the Dublin Regulation to unaccompanied children who qualify for transfer to the UK under family reunification provisions. Since January 2016 our records show that over 60 children have been transferred from other EU countries to the UK.In addtion, the government continues to implement the Immigration Act 2016, including the provision to transfer unaccompained refugee children to the UK from elswhere in Europe. We are consulting local authorities as required and are also working closely with relevant Member States and other partners such as UNHCR, UNICEF and Save the Children.We are working with UNHCR on our Children at Risk Resettlement Scheme to resettle vulnerable children, both unaccompanied and with their family members from the Middle East and North Africa region. We have committed to resettling several hundred individuals in the first year.Information on the number of unaccompanied children granted under refugee family reunion provisions in the Immigration Rules is not captured in our data and would require a manual review. This information cannot therefore be provided without exceeding proportionate costs.

Visas: Malawi

Lord Steel of Aikwood: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the Scotland Malawi Partnership's statement that it has lost confidence in the handling of visa applications for Malawi citizens visiting Scotland; and what steps they plan to take in response.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Home Office has an established dialogue with the Scotland Malawi Partnership, and UK Visas and Immigration have been in direct correspondence with them in relation to the specific issues raised in their recent statement.

Asylum: Education

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what policies are in place to ensure that newly arrived asylum seekers placed in Home Office initial accommodation have immediate access to the education system.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The issue of education provision for children seeking asylum is an important one and the Home Office makes every effort to ensure that families with children who claim asylum support have access to education at the earliest opportunity.To enable access to education, internal checks are in place to triage applications involving children of school age for priority dispersal from initial accommodation facilities into permanent accommodation.

Horn of Africa: EU Immigration

Lord Chidgey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to commit to include safe and legal routes of passage from the Horn of Africa into the Khartoum Process.

Lord Chidgey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what role they plan to take in the design of an international migration policy, based on respect for human rights, when they no longer chair the Khartoum Process.

Lord Chidgey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the monitoring and oversight mechanisms in place in respect of the use of EU funds to ensure that the Khartoum Process complies with human rights norms.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Government is continuing its Chairmanship of the Khartoum Process, and remains committed in its support for human rights. Our focus remains on the implementation of the actions agreed at last year’s EU-Africa Valletta Summit on migration.We are working with EU and international partners to ensure that EU funding underlying the Khartoum Process is properly monitored and overseen, including compliance with the EU Treaties which includes respect for human rights.

Refugees: Children

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many unaccompanied child refugees have so far been officially identified in Europe, aside from the UK, and how many of those have reached the UK.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Government is firmly committed to bringing vulnerable unaccompanied refugee children from Europe to the UK, as underpinned by the Immigration Act 2016. Over 20 children who meet the criteria in the Immigration Act have been accepted for transfer from Europe since Royal Assent, the majority of whom have already arrived in the UK.We are in active discussions with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, UNICEF and Non-Governmental Organisations in addition to the Italian, Greek and French governments to strengthen and speed up mechanisms to identify, assess and transfer children who meet the criteria to the UK where this in their best interests.As is required by the Immigration Act 2016, we are consulting with local authorities to confirm available capacity and to ensure appropriate support systems are in place.We cannot put a fixed number on arrivals at this point. The legislation is clear that consultation with local authorities is needed before any figure is set. It is vital that their capacity and ability to help is taken into account. We must also ensure that we are able to continue to fulfil our obligations to children who are already in the UK.

HM Treasury

Infrastructure: EU Grants and Loans

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the UK leaving the EU on the level and availability of European funding for UK clean energy projects and other big infrastructure schemes.

Lord O'Neill of Gatley: As the Prime Minister has made clear, while the UK remains a member of the EU, current EU funding arrangements continue unchanged. It will be for the government under the new Prime Minister to begin the negotiation to exit the EU and set out the arrangements they will put in place for recipients of EU funding.

Department of Health

Tobacco

Lord Young of Cookham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government on what date they plan to publish the Tobacco Control Plan for England.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The Tobacco Control Plan is currently being developed and Ministers will decide on an appropriate publication date in due course.

Health Professions

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people are employed by NHS England as (1) audiologists, (2) cardiac physiologists, (3) gastrointestinal physiologists, (4) neurophysiologists, (5) respiratory physiologists, and (6) sleep physiologists.

Lord Prior of Brampton: NHS England (legally known as the NHS Commissioning Board) does not employ any individuals with the job titles specified.